South Korean Starbucks boss apologizes for ad campaign that evoked
massacre
[May 26, 2026] By
KIM TONG-HYUNG
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean retail tycoon Chung Yong-jin on
Tuesday issued his second apology in two weeks as Starbucks’ local
operation faces a backlash over a recent marketing campaign that was
widely perceived as mocking victims of a bloody military crackdown on
pro-democracy protesters in 1980.
Chung, chairman of Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5% stake in
Starbucks Korea, bowed three times during a televised statement as he
pleaded for forgiveness from the families of democracy activists killed
by the country's former military dictatorship and from the broader
public.
The coffee chain sparked public outrage when it attempted to promote a
large size of tumbler it calls a “tank” by declaring May 18 to be “Tank
Day.” That's the anniversary of a democratic uprising in the southern
city of Gwangju that was brutally suppressed by troops, tanks and
helicopters, killing or injuring hundreds.
The campaign compounded outrage by using the slogan “Thwack it on the
table!,” which many read as a reference to a notorious 1987 police
statement that attempted to cover up the torture death of student
activist Park Jong-chol. Police claimed that Park died suddenly after
investigators “hit the desk with a thwack.”
The promotion was met with immediate outrage and within hours Shinsegae
canceled it and fired the chief executive of Starbucks Korea. Police
also opened an investigation based on complaints by families of people
killed at Gwangju.
“I take it very seriously the fact that many people felt deep pain and
anger because of Starbucks Korea’s inappropriate marketing campaign,”
Chung said Tuesday.
He also asked people not to take out their frustration on staff at
Starbucks shops, saying the responsibility lies with management. There
were no immediate reports of major incidents at stores.
Chung issued his first apology on May 19, saying in a statement that the
campaign caused “deep pain to the victims and bereaved families of the
May 18 Democratization Movement as well as to the public.”
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Chung Yong-jin, a chairman of Shinsegae Group, bows to apologize in
Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
 Jeon Sangjin, a senior Shinsegae
Group executive, said the company has yet to find conclusive
evidence that Starbucks Korea marketing employees intended to mock
the pro-democracy movement, an accusation the employees have denied.
However, he said some employees refused management requests to hand
over their smartphones during a weeklong internal review. Jeon said
the company would look at results from the police inquiry and any
employee found to have intended to ridicule protesters would be
fired.
The anger over the campaign has triggered public calls for boycotts,
amplified by government officials, including Interior and Safety
Minister Yoon Ho-jung, who said Starbucks products will no longer be
used at government events and lamented the chain’s “anti-historical
behavior.”
President Lee Jae Myung said on X last week that the campaign
displayed “inhumane and disgraceful behavior by cheap profiteers who
deny the values of the South Korean community, basic human rights
and democracy.”
The crackdown in Gwangju came months after General Chun Doo-hwan
seized power in a coup in late 1979. Government records show about
200 people died in Gwangju, but activists say the true death toll
was much higher. Chun’s government also imprisoned tens of
thousands, saying it was rooting out social evils.
Public anger over Chun’s dictatorship led to massive nationwide
protests in 1987, forcing him to accept a constitutional revision
introducing direct presidential elections, which is widely seen as
the start of South Korea’s transition to democracy.
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